


The Time Page's Wish

by The_Bookkeeper_96



Series: Saving Time [1]
Category: Time Warp Trio
Genre: Action, Adventure, Gen, Magic, Paris - Freeform, Science Fiction, TWT, Time Travel
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-11-24
Updated: 2018-07-26
Packaged: 2018-12-04 09:39:57
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 10
Words: 19,069
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11552487
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/The_Bookkeeper_96/pseuds/The_Bookkeeper_96
Summary: It's been four months and Uncle Joe is still missing. On his twelfth birthday, Joe decides it's time to track him down. One wish lands them in the middle of a revolution. And it seems the only way to get them home is with the help of some untrustworthy thieves. As long as they don't take The Book for themselves.





	1. Prologue

_Tick._

The sound echoes throughout the massive circular chambers, reverberating off clock faces, hourglasses, and globes. The centerpiece of the room is a large, dark wooden desk with a matching chair resting behind it. Though the room is sparsely decorated, it leaves anyone who enters it with a sense of wonder. There is something strange about the air. Something thick floats through it, caressing your skin and teasing your hair. It's almost… magical.

“It would seem we have run out of time.”

“Not yet, but the countdown has begun. The hourglass will soon be empty.”

Two figures stand alone in the expansive office. A plethora of clocks hang on the walls, and grandfather clocks are proudly displayed underneath them. Each one is set to a different time and decorated with unique patterns and symbols. One clock stands out among the rest, the source of the _tick_.

This clock isn’t huge, but it dwarfs the other clocks all the same. The room pulses with its power. It's a grandfather clock, and the pendulum has been carved to look like a skull with hourglasses for eyes. The face is glowing a soft green. Mist of the same color is gradually spilling out of the sides of the dark wooden frame. On this clock, the time is 12:01.

“I suppose it was too much to hope that we would not be the ones to deal with this,” the first figure speaks, eyeing the deadly clock with a crease in their brow.

“We won't,” the second figure says. Their expression is a mirror of their partner's. Their eyes skim the top of the desk, looking for something that is not there. “The next generation will not be so lucky.”

“They’re children. Not to mention they are still untrained. We can’t possibly ask them to do this.”

“You know as well as I do that we have no choice. They'll just have to start their training earlier than we had originally planned. I know the traditional age is eighteen, but exceptions have been made in the past.”

"Yes, but never this young."

They stare at the clock in silence, as if it would guide them through this. It responds with its own silence. The silver hands remain still. Mist continues to pour out of the sides. It dissipates only a foot away from the base, but it's still thick enough to hide the floor surrounding it.

“How long do you think we have?” They try and fail to hide the tremor in their voice. To distract themselves, they twirl a silver ring around their finger. A strange alchemic symbol catches the light, briefly reflecting it onto the skull pendulum.

“A few years at least. Though the decay rate of time is more than likely exponential.” They tap their chin, lost in thought. A similar ring with a different alchemic symbol rests on their finger. “We've probably already lost the Hadean Eon.”

“The general population will begin to notice soon then." They let out a heavy sigh, shaking their head. "Are the letters ready to be sent out? We'll need to start training immediately. The council will want to host the trial soon.”

“They were ready the moment they were born.” The figure holds their palm out. Like magic, two golden envelopes fly out from behind the desk in the center of the room. “You know where to go. Find them as soon as possible.”

Each envelope is embellished with one name written in green ink, but no address. Nonetheless, the two letters disappear in a puff of lime-green smoke and begin to find their way to their recipients.

“I wish we had more time."

"When has wishing ever helped? Besides, this event has been years in the making. You know the story as well as I do." They glance at a bookshelf crammed full of books of all colours and sizes with loose pieces of paper sticking out haphazardly here and there. It occupies an entire corner of the room, the only place that doesn't have any clocks or hourglasses. If any more books are added, they will need a second bookshelf.

"Do you really think they can save us? Do you think we can train them well enough for this?”

“What other choice do we have? We're running out of time, and everyone’s lives depend on them.”

_Tick._


	2. Happy Birthday!

"Happy birthday!" Fred and Sam cheer.

Joe beams at his two best friends and blows out the lone candle on his slice of cake. He can't remember a time in his life when they weren't by his side. Most kids his age would want to have an over-the-top party with hundreds of guests. But Joe's perfectly content to sit around his house with his long-time friends. Currently, they are sitting around his bedroom, torn wrapping paper is scattered around the room. Each boy is holding a plate with a piece of vanilla cake on top of it. The daily news drones on in the background.

"For those just tuning in, we are reporting live from the American Museum of Natural History. This morning, the museum discovered some of their oldest items on exhibit had vanished. Officials are still investigating the scene for signs of a break-in, but no evidence has yet been found. This robbery follows a string of recent events at several museums throughout the country. Museums have not been the only victims. Private collectors have also-"

The TV screen flicks to black.

Fred tosses the remote back onto Joe's bed. "How can you listen to that stuff?" Fred groans. "It's so boring."

Joe shrugs. "My dad's been really concerned lately. He doesn't want any of his relics from his trips getting stolen. He has a lot of valuable things downstairs. Masks, shields, a sarcophagus, all one-of-a-kind stuff."

"Fred, you should be concerned. A lot of historically priceless items are going missing." Sam sighs and shakes his head. "They're culturally and scientifically important."

"It's not like they're gone forever. Someone just stole them. The police will find them and bring them back. Things don't just vanish out of thin air." Fred swallows a large bite of birthday cake, and continues to speak with a full mouth. "You worry too much."

Sam rolls his eyes, knowing he isn't going to get through to Fred. He turns his attention to his other friend. "Aren't you concerned, Joe?"

"About my dad's artifacts? Sure, but he installed a new security system, and very few people know what he has."

"No." Sam looks out the door to make sure no one is listening in. He wants to argue that whatever security system his dad had bought was probably not better than what the museums use, but he has another point to make. "About _The Book_. It's basically a historical artifact. That thing is likely to be thousands of years old, if not millions."

Joe glances at the locked box on top of his dresser. Two years ago, he had received a mysterious blue book as a birthday gift from his uncle. He, Sam, and Fred had quickly discovered that it was more than just a book. It was a time machine, but even that doesn't sum up everything it's capable of. Not that Joe was aware of the amount of power it holds.

He hasn't messed with _The Book_ in a while. Four months ago, he warped to Scotland with his younger sister and great-granddaughter, Jodie. His uncle had shown up as well, but on the return warp home, he had oddly vanished, leaving only a note and a pocket watch behind. Joe had been promoted to a Time Page, whatever that meant. He has so many questions for his uncle, but no way to ask them. Joe's beginning to worry. He had hoped his uncle would show up today to wish him a happy birthday, but there's been no sight of him so far.

Joe glances at his doorway, hoping to see a familiar face appear. Maybe he just got caught in traffic. He has to show up today. He wouldn't forget his favourite nephew's birthday.

Sam notices his staring, a small frown forming. "Still no word from your Uncle Joe, huh?"

"What?" Joe snaps out of his thoughts and turns to Sam. Reluctantly, he answers, "No. It's been months and as I far as I know, he hasn't come back. I'm sure he's fine. He can handle himself."

Both Fred and Sam hear the doubt in his voice. A quick smile lights up Fred's face. "I have an idea. This will definitely get your mind off of things." He gets to his feet and walks over to the lock box. He flips the lid open with ease and pulls out a small blue book with silver designs on the cover. "How about we take a little trip? Wherever the birthday boy wants to go. What do you say?"

"I say no!" Sam jumps up and away from _The Book_. He looks at Fred like he's holding a gun to his head. "When has using that ever gone well for us?"

"Oh, come on, Sam. Joe's a Time Page now. He's like a super warper! Besides, we've been doing this for two years." Fred waves _The Book_ back and forth, teasing his friends. Not realizing how dangerous his actions are. "It'll be more fun than laying around here all day."

Joe eyes _The Book_. Truthfully, he's more worried Fred's going to send them back to the dinosaurs. He hops off his bed and grabs it out of Fred's hands before anything bad happens. "I don't know, Fred. I haven't used it in a while. I'm sort of out of practice."

"So, get back in practice!" Fred throws his arm over Joe's shoulder. "Hey, we can even try to find your Uncle Joe."

Joe pauses at that. He does want to find his uncle to make sure he's okay, and he does miss warping. "Well…"

"No, no, no." Sam crosses his arms. "We're having plenty of fun here. We don't need to warp anywhere. With our luck, we'll end up in the middle of the Revolutionary War!" 

"But I'm a Time Page now." Joe lifts his chin high. "I can take us anywhere, no problem." Joe starts to like the idea of warping to find his uncle more and more. Sam isn't wrong. They had had some crazy mishaps before, but that was in the past. Besides, everything always turned out all right in the end for them.

"Joe," Sam warns. He continues to inch away from the book in Joe's hands. He's really the only one of the three who fully understands the power _The Book_ contains. He's rightfully afraid of it. 

Joe grins, his mind made. "Guys, we're going on a trip."

"You are out of your mind," Sam groans. He holds up his hands, as if that would stop him from being sucked away into the green mist.

"Calm down, Sam." Joe flips open _The Book_ and scans for a page that would help him find his Uncle Joe. He has no idea where to start. He should have read it a long time ago. Summer break is about to end, but there are still a few weeks left. Maybe he can read a few chapters before he goes back to school.

"So where do you want to go?" Fred's grin is so wide it practically falls off his face. "Borneo? Maui? Oh! How about Jamaica?"

"Maybe…" In truth, Joe doesn't want to go to any of those places. Sure, they're nice, but they aren't going to help him find his uncle. He could try going back to Scotland. He doesn't really want to relive getting shot from a trebuchet though. And Uncle Joe left on the warp home. He probably isn't there.

"Nowhere. He wants to go nowhere," Sam pleads. He stares at Joe with wide eyes. "I really don't want to die today."

"We won't die, Sam." Joe chuckles. "We'll have a few near-death experiences, but we won't die. If anything happens, I'll use my amazing Time Page skills to take us home."

"How is that any better?" Sam's voice rises in pitch.

Joe continues to flip through the pages of his magical book. He finds a picture of his family tree. It traces all the way back to the first owner of _The Book_ , some girl named Shanti. He traces his finger down the trunk until he finds his Uncle Joe. He tries tapping on the photo, but nothing happens. No mist, nothing. Maybe there's another way to find his lost uncle. What are some of the ways they had triggered a warp in the past? Palindromes, magic squares, wishes…

"You want to travel? That's fine. Let's do it like normal people. We'll book a flight somewhere." Sam stands behind Joe's bed. He glares at Fred, as if this was all his fault. "I'll even pay for it."

"You can afford to take all of us on a tropical vacation?" Fred crosses his arms, his eyebrow raises. "Why have you been holding back on us, man?"

Joe closes his eyes, blocking out his friends' bickering. _I wish I could find my Uncle Joe_ , he thinks. It seems childish, but it worked in the past. The first time they had ever warped, it was because Fred had wished they could find buried treasure and sail the seventeen seas. Next thing they knew, they were stuck in a tree staring down at Blackbeard.

Joe waits, but nothing happens with _The Book_. Maybe he isn't wishing for the right thing, or maybe he has to say it out loud? Joe speaks with a sigh, "I just wish I was on the right path."

On cue, green mist pours out of _The Book_ , swirling around the boys. It slides up their legs, eager to take them somewhere and sometime new.

"What did you do?" Sam jumps onto the bed, trying and failing to avoid the magical fog. It wraps around his waist, like a person reuniting with an old friend.

Fred laughs. "I hope it takes us somewhere fun. No Antarctica, no African desert. Please, take us somewhere tropical."

Joe grins at the time travel machine with sparkling eyes. He honestly didn't expect that to work. Unlike Fred, he doesn't care if _The Book_ takes them someplace fun or exciting. As long as it gets him on the right track to find his Uncle Joe, he'll be more than happy.

In the blink of an eye, the mist pulls them away.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Reviews and critiques always welcome! Thanks for reading!


	3. Bienvenue a Paris

The first sight to greet the boys is a horse drawn carriage raging towards them.

"I knew it!" Sam screams, cowering in the street. "I knew I was going to die today!"

Fred and Joe jump to the safety of the sidewalk, dragging Sam along with them, unceremoniously dropping him when they get there.

"Geez, Sam," Fred chuckles. "You would think you've never been nearly run over before."

"Because I haven't!"

"I can think of three separate occasions where that has happened to us."

"Guys," Joe cuts them off. He forces them to look in his direction. "Check this out."

Across the street, in large, bold lettering, the words "kill the king" are painted on a wall. Each word is painted blue, white, and red respectively. A grotesque caricature of a king hanging from a rope is drawn underneath. His eyes are Xs and a bloated blue tongue is popping out of his mouth. There are smaller stick figures surrounding it that appear to be cheering his death.

To their credit, the people walking on the street pay it no mind. They simply go about their day, like nothing is out of the ordinary.

"Kill the king?" Sam runs his hand through his hair, tugging at the ends, and pulling a few strands out. "Where on Earth did you take us? What did you do?"

"I just wanted to find my uncle. So, maybe he's here?" Joe scans the crowd, looking for a familiar purple top hat and curly mustache. Nothing stands out to him, but it's hard to see over the three-foot-tall wigs and voluminous dresses everyone is wearing. Joe bites his lip. "He has to be here."

"Maybe you're the reason we're here, Sam," Fred argues. "You were the one who started talking about the revolution. We all know that thing only needs one trigger word to kick on. Killing a king seems pretty revolutionary to me."

Sam's fists clench. "This isn't my fault. I didn't even want to warp!"

"Calm down." Joe stops the search for Uncle Joe to end Fred and Sam's bickering. "Let's just look around for a bit and see if my uncle is nearby. If we don't find him, I promise I'll take us all home with the- _oh_."

"Let me guess. You don't have _The Book_?" Sam's arms fold across his torso. He cocks an eyebrow at Joe.

"It must've slipped out of my hands when we warped." Joe rubs the back of his neck. "It's gotta be close."

"Great, just great." Sam huffs. "What happened to your amazing Time Page skills? I thought you had better control over that thing!"

"I do! I swear! But accidents happen." Joe turns and starts walking down the street, glancing in shop windows for any sign of _The Book_ or his uncle. Fred and Sam move to keep up with him. "I promise, I'll have us home in no time."

"Where have I heard that before?" Sam grumbles under his breath.

Fred, enjoying the moment, observes everything going on around them. He tips his hat at passersby. "Sam, I really think you should lighten up a bit. Have you tried yoga? This isn't so bad. For a revolution, I'd say this is pretty calm. No fighting, no yelling. People are chill. How is this even considered a war?"

Sam opens his mouth to counter Fred, but noticing the peacefulness of the streets, changes his mind. "You're right."

"Thank you. I'm not completely stupid, you know," Fred teases his nerdy friend, a silly grin appearing to match his mood.

Sam rolls his eyes. "Something isn't right. If this is a revolution, why are there no gunshots or screams?"

"Are you saying you want there to be gunshots and screams?"

"No."

"Maybe it just hasn't started yet, but the tensions are building." Joe shrugs, more concerned about dealing with the real reason why they came here. "We don't know the exact date or anything. We don't even know where we are."

"Let's just get out of here before the actual fighting starts then."

The trio continues their walk down the busy streets. Aside from a few stray looks, no one pays them any attention. They don't fit in with their clothes or hair styles, but no one seems to care or stops to ask them any questions.  None of the people they walk past are Uncle Joe and none of the bookstores have _The Book_.

"Can we take a break or something? I'm starving." Fred rubs his stomach, which is growling profusely.

"You just ate almost half a cake. How does your body burn so much energy?" Sam stares at Fred with raised eyebrows. "You are a mystery and an enigma to science."

"It's called being an athlete. I'm constantly active."

"All you've done is walk for fifteen minutes," Joe argues, but concedes to Fred's request to find food. "Let's check out this street market over here. Maybe _The Book_ will be there."

"When is it ever that easy?"

Joe ignores Sam snarky comment and leads them into a street market. Stalls selling everything from clothes to food to art line the narrow street. Vendors shout at anyone walking by to come look at their goods. All of them claim to have the cheapest prices and highest quality in the whole city. Each stall is vibrantly coloured, causing passersby to take a second look, but at seeing the items that are being sold, walk away quickly before the seller can lure them in.

It doesn't take long for Fred to sniff out the food section. Shoving past Joe and Sam, he scurries down the sidewalk in search of the intoxicating smell. His stomach growls louder and louder with every step he takes. "I'm going to eat every piece of food that I see."

Joe and Sam have to practically run to keep up with him. The desire for food gives Fred an almost unnatural speed. They soon find the source of the smell. A stand selling fresh baked bread waits patiently for its next customer, a timid-looking girl stands behind the counter. Unlike the other vendors, she doesn't call out to the people passing by. She merely waits on her stool, knowing the smell of bread alone will draw in customers.

Fred charges into the stand. The girl jumps, covering her face, and shaking.

"Your food smells incredible! I want to eat it all." Fred nearly starts drooling at the sight of a baguette resting on top of the counter.

The girl peeks out from behind her hands. "You're not going to hurt me?"

"No." Fred tilts his head, momentarily distracted from the food. "Why would I do that?"

"You just came here so fast. I thought-" She shakes her head, any fear falling away. She beams at Fred, now ready to be a hard-bargaining vendor. "Never mind, you want all of my bread? You can have it. Fifty francs."

"Fifty what?" Fred scratches his head, confused by what the girl is asking and by the smell of bread muddling his thoughts. "I don't think I have that."

"Then no sale." The girl pulls the baguette off the table and out of Fred's sight. "Please leave so people who actually have money can come here."

"Sorry, miss." Joe is late to the conversation, but can tell what happened. "We're a little short on cash right now. But we do have something we can trade."

The girl lifts her eyebrow, and motions for him to continue.

"You see, we're performers." Joe whips out a deck of cards, something he always has on him. Fred and Sam groan behind him, knowing exactly where this is going. "I'll do a magic trick, and you give us free bread. Sound like a deal?"

The girl pauses, considering her options. She looks into Joe's eyes and opens her mouth.

And spits in his face. "I can't live off of stupid magic tricks, boy. Find somewhere else to get your food."

Joe grimaces and hurriedly wipes the spit off his cheek, gagging in the process. The trio walks away. "Well, she was rude."

"Dude, when will you learn no one likes your silly card tricks?" Fred snickers.

"They're not silly. They're-"

Joe's cut off by a raucous clanging at the end of the street. Shouts fill the air as three people dash out from behind a stall and sprint down the street, right towards the boys. It's hard to get a good look at them. They slip through the crowd with ease, as if this is an everyday occurrence for them. They wear dull clothes that are clearly not in style. No one gets a good look at their faces and they are dressed in black cloaks to hide any distinguishing features.

Well-built, burly men jump out after them. "Thieves! Stop them!" They encourage the crowd to apprehend the runners, but no one steps forward, too stunned to do anything but gawk. They thunder down the market, shoving anyone who gets in their way and even some who don't.

The supposed thieves burst through the crowd, moving forward with their escape with ease. A blast of air whips across the trio's faces, and they are suddenly pushed against a wall. One of them turns back to yell a quick, "Sorry!" temporarily revealing a feminine face with emerald green eyes before dashing around the corner and out of the boys' sight.

"What in the…" Fred trails off. "I'm not crazy, right? You guys saw that too?"

Both Joe and Sam nod, like Fred and the rest of the shoppers they are stunned and confused. They each groan and step away from the wall, rubbing sore shoulders and necks.

Fred pats his pocket, noticing a lump that was not there two minutes ago. "Uh, what is this?" He pulls out a small, but heavy, black bag. Opening it up, he finds several coins made of pure gold piled up inside. His teeth clench. "Oh, no."

"You there, halt!" A booming voice barks at them. "You are under arrest for stealing from the royal Paris treasury."

The trio takes one glance at each other, and knows exactly what to do next. "Run."


	4. A Familiar Situation

A bullet wizzes past the boys' heads, shattering the glass store window in front of them.

Sam yelps and dives behind Fred for cover. "Gee, thanks," Fred grumbles. "Glad to know I'm your favourite meat shield."

"Just keep running!" Joe pushes Fred and Sam forward. The last thing he wants is an argument to break out and prevent them from escaping. "Fred, why do you have a bag of gold?"

"I don't know!" They slip around a corner, barely dodging a crowd of people. The guards are still on their tails, and slam through the crowd without so much as an apology. "I don't remember stealing it. And I think I would remember stealing something like this." Fred holds up the heavy bag that magically appeared in his pocket moments ago, and tucks it away in his pants again. "At least we know we're in Paris now."

"We just need to find someplace to hide and lay low for a bit. Keep moving."

The trio runs down the streets of Paris, startling every pedestrian they pass. The shouts of the guards continue to follow them as they run. Joe spots a gap in between two buildings. He slips into it with ease, pulling Fred and Sam in with him. Their feet continue to pound the pavement as they bolt down the alley. They're forced to run in a single file line, and still their shoulders graze the walls.

Joe winces as the brick tears at his clothes, pulling fabric and skin off. He feels a warm liquid drip down his arm. As much as he wants to stop, he doesn't. He can't.

Another bullet blasts through the air. Flakes of mortar fall into the boys' eyes. Sam yelps, stumbles into Fred, and they both fall to the ground. Fred reaches for Joe in an attempt to catch himself, but only manages to pull Joe down with them. They slam into the earth.

The trio doesn't even have time to groan before they're pulled to their feet and find themselves face to face with five furious guards.

"You three are under arrest for theft, attempt to avoid capture, and assault of a royal guard." The guard huffs, taking a moment to lean against the wall. He has to pant between every word. "You are to be taken to prison forthwith, and to be tried in three days' time."

"Assault? We didn't assault anyone. And we didn't steal anything either!" Fred struggles and fails to get out of the guards' unrelenting grip.

The guards holding Fred rummage through Fred's pockets, pulling out the bag of gold coins. He shoves it into his own pocket. "Then how did you come into the possession of this? Did it magically appear in your hands?"

"You didn't get rid of it?" Sam shrieks at the same time Fred says, "Yes!"

The guards exchange raised eyebrows and chuckles. Their humor is short-lived. They shove the boys in front them, holding their guns to the back of their heads. "Nice try, boy. Now shut up, and come with us. Any more crazy-talk, and we'll lock you up in the looney-bin."

* * *

Joe, Sam, and Fred are unceremoniously dumped into a prison cell. It's dark and crowded, three other bodies already occupy the space. There's only one window, but it's too small for more than one person to see out of at a time. "You lunatics are going to wait here until your trial. And no more talk of magic!"

"But I didn't take the stupid- forget it." Fred crosses his arms and lets out a harsh breath of air. "Why does this always happen to us? We never even do anything wrong. I mean, how many times have we been thrown into jail?"

"And to think, if you had just listened to me, we could still be sitting in Joe's bedroom eating birthday cake." Sam glares at Fred. "Who knows if we'll ever find  _The Book_  now?"

Fred sticks his tongue out at Sam.

Joe sighs, sits back against the wall, and thinks through the situation. He hadn't meant for this to happen. All he wanted was to find his Uncle Joe. Why would  _The Book_  take him to old France to find his uncle? There must be something he's missing. But what?

"Why is it always my fault whenever we warp?" Fred and Sam's argument drags on in the background.

"Um, because it is?"

"That's not true. It's been Joe's fault at least three times."

"But you-"

A sharp voice cuts them off, "Will you two shut up? It's bad enough I must rot away in a prison cell. The last thing I want is to hear two morons fighting." The voice comes from a few cells down. "I shouldn't even be in here anyway. Don't they know who I am?"

Another voice, this one closer, scoffs. "That's what they all say. And yet, they all end up in prison just the same."

The trio jumps, moving closer together. The new voice came from inside their cell. For the first time, they get a good look at the three other people imprisoned with them. It's three girls, all of which appear to be around the boys' age. The one sitting in the middle squints at Fred and Sam, her emerald green eyes unimpressed. "Are you two  _crétins_  done? As annoying as the Comte is, he does have a point. You two are very annoying. I'm trying to get my beauty sleep."

Fred opens his mouth to respond, but shuts it quickly, taking a second look at the girl. "Hey, I know you. You're the girls who were running away from those guards. You're the ones they wanted, not us!" He pauses for a moment, the gears in his head slowly turning. "You put that bag of money in my pocket, didn't you? You're the reason we're in here!"

The girl smirks and scans Fred up and down. "So we are. What are you going to do? Have us arrested?"

Fred's fists clench, a low growl emitting from his throat. Joe swiftly slides in front of him, changing the focus of the room to him. "What my friend here is trying to say is, hi. His name is Fred. I'm Joe, and the other uh,  _crétin_  is Sam. We're sort of new to the area, and we were hoping for a warmer welcome."

Another girl, with brunette hair so messy it makes it seem like she's been in prison for years, speaks up, "Well, that's obvious. Look at how you're dressed. I'm surprised they didn't drag you into an asylum." She eyes the trio with grey-blue eyes, a crease forming in her brow.

"What's wrong with our clothes?" Fred looks down at himself. He's wearing his standard jersey and blue jeans. "Not a Giants fan?"

"No."

The third girl, whose glasses seem too large for her face, but enhance the size of her hazel eyes, finally joins the conversation. "And what  _our_  friend is trying to say is, it's nice to meet you. Her name is Arwen. I'm Juniper, and the girl who singlehandedly got us all arrested is Tessa."

"Wait, how did you three end up here if you escaped the guards at the market?" Joe steps forward and sits down across from the new girls.

"Forgery. Apparently, my document making skills have declined a bit. I'm a little out of practice." The girl with the green eyes, Tessa, lays her arms across her chest, like this is an everyday occurrence for her and her friends. She tosses a sly wink at Joe. "Don't worry. They can't keep us here for long. We'll be out in no time."

Joe looks away with a sudden desire to get out of the cell and away from these strangers.

"How are you so sure?" Sam raises an eyebrow at Tessa.

"Haven't you heard the rumors? Today is July fourteenth." The smallest girl, Juniper, says.

The boys stare at her with blank faces.

"Wow, just where are you three from exactly?" The blue-eyed girl, Arwen, tilts her head to the side. She hasn't looked away from the trio once.

"New York. Perhaps you've heard of it?" Fred's chest puffs up. "It's like a million miles away, but it's pretty much regarded as the greatest city in the world."

"Actually, New York City is only 5,834 kilometers away," Juniper says as if this is a well-known fact.

Again, the boys give the girls blank stares.

"Sorry, do you guys use the imperial system? Then it's 3,625 miles away." When everyone continues to stare at her, Juniper blushes and studies a chip in the wall. "Sorry."

"How do you know that?" Fred's mouth is slightly agape.

"Juniper here is our little mathmagician. She can do any math problem or number conversion in her head in thirty seconds, tops." Arwen throws a pale, muscular arm around her tiny friend. The praise only makes Juniper's cheeks redder. Her long black hair falls in front of her face, and she presses herself against the wall.

"Not that it's ever been useful," Tessa mumbles under her breath, earning a glare from Arwen. Tessa rolls her eyes, stands up, and looks out the window. She taps her long fingers along the edge, and pulls out a pocket watch, checking the time.

Without their cloaks on, the girls seem like any other Parisian citizen. Joe watches Tessa, not really knowing why, but he feels an urgent tugging in his gut, like Tessa is pulling on an invisible leash. The slim rays of sunlight reflect off her warm brown skin and make her auburn hair look more red than brown. She tosses her hair over her shoulder, and it nearly falls to her waist.

Joe's eyes are drawn to the pocket watch in her hands, trying to find the source of the tugging sensation. Something about it seems familiar to him, but he can't figure out why.

Arwen continues to talk to Juniper, trying to pry her out of her shell. Juniper's hair is as long as Tessa's, and she uses every inch of it to shield herself from view.

As soon as silence settles over the group, it's shattered by angry shouts coming from outside.

"Finally." Tessa beams.

"What's that?" Sam's fingers twitch as he backs away from the window.

"The French Revolution!" Tessa punches a fist into the air. "We are getting out of here."

"The French…" Sam's face pales to snow white. "Oh no.  _Oh no_. Are we in the Bastille?"

"Where else would you be?" Arwen and Juniper stand, both look as happy as Tessa. The three girls gather by the window, clamoring to get a good look outside.

"This is bad. This is really, really bad." Sam runs to the door, rattling the bars.

"Um, why is this bad? If we're getting out, isn't that a good thing?" Fred puts his hands on his hips. "Do you want to spend the rest of your days in a tiny prison cell?"

"No! But I don't want to die either. This place is about to be stormed with soldiers."

"So?"

"And blown to pieces by canons."

"Oh."

The shouts outside gradually grow louder and louder, reaching a thunderous crescendo. A gunshot pierces the air, and all hell breaks loose.


	5. A Revolution

"Incoming!" Tessa drops to the ground.

The back wall shatters. An intense noise resounds throughout the building, knocking everyone off their feet. The acrid and sour smell of gunpowder fills the air. It's impossible to see through the thick, black smoke.

A chorus of groans and coughs rises as the smoke finally clears minutes later.

"Everyone okay?" Joe asks as he pushes himself off the ground. He looks around the cell to make sure everyone still has their limbs and heads on.

"We're good." Fred helps Sam get back on his feet.

"Oh, we're better than good," Tessa stands in front of a massive hole in the wall. The hole reveals the chaotic bloodshed happening on the ground. The grin on her face is so wide, it might split her head in two. "We're free!"

"Great. Can we go home now?" Arwen narrows her eyebrows at Tessa.

"Not yet. Our mission isn't over."

Joe joins Tessa by the hole in the wall, letting out a low whistle. He watches as the battle rages on below. Guns fire at a rapid rate. Those who don't have guns make every punch and kick count.

"Let's go girls." Tessa moves to jump outside. Arwen and Juniper get up to follow her. All three are more than happy to leave the prison cell behind.

"Wait, you're just going to leave us here?" Fred stomps over to Tessa and Joe, eyebrows knitted together. "You're the reason we're in here!"

Tessa shrugs. "If you want to come, I won't stop you. Just make sure you can keep up. We're not going to wait for you." With a wink, Tessa hops outside, landing on a ledge below.

Juniper and Arwen give the boys sympathetic looks before following Tessa out the hole.

"Now what do we do?" Sam huffs.

"We follow them." Without giving Joe or Sam a chance to argue, he jumps outside and escapes with the girls.

"All I wanted to do today was enjoy some birthday cake with my friends. Now I'm about to run headfirst into a revolution with a bunch of strangers." Sam and Joe carefully climb out of the hole and join everyone else on the ground.

Tessa smirks, watching Sam and Joe awkwardly make their way down to the street. "We need to get out of the city. It's hard to win a revolution if we get killed in the first battle. Follow us, and you should be safe."

"Should?"

The girls take off, slipping around the building with ease. The trio runs after them to keep up.

Tessa, Arwen, and Juniper seem to know the city like the back of their hands. They always know where to turn and what buildings are safe to run through. They've clearly been living in Paris their whole lives. The shrieks and booms of the fighting fuel everyone enough to run without stopping.

The group plows through the next building, bursting out into a new alley. The slam of the door catches the attention of two nearby soldiers. Already frightened from the fighting going on everywhere around them, they fire their guns without looking.

The bullets blaze through the air, heading straight for the kids.

Joe's hands fly up to protect his face, a slight tingling sensation buzzing in his palms. A scream tears out of his throat, "stop!"

The air stills. The bullets freeze in place. A haze of green covers the air.

Joe drops his hands, and the bullets fall to the ground. Everyone stares at him with wide eyes and open mouths.

"What the hell was that?" Arwen exclaims. Tessa and Juniper are clearly thinking the same thing. The girls slowly back away from the trio, mirrored expressions of fear across all their faces.

Joe's mouth open and shuts as he tries to find the words to explain himself. He never gets the chance.

"Devil!" The soldiers yell. They shakily raise their guns to fire again.

"I'll explain later." Joe pushes everyone forward. He doubts that he can pull that trick twice.

The gang flies around the corner just as another bullet zips through the air. It hits another building. Dust floats to the ground.

Shouts ring out from behind the children as they run away once more. Heavy footsteps echo off the wall. Without looking back, they know they're being followed.

"In here!" Arwen shoulders a door open, and everyone tumbles inside. With a slam, the door closes, leaving everyone in the dark. No one dares to make a sound. They wait with bated breath. The girls create a noticeable distance between them and Joe. He tries in vain to ignore it.

Fred leans his ear against the door. Several heartbeats later, thunderous stomping storms past. They wait until the shouts vanish before peaking outside. Not a single person is in sight.

"Looks like the coast is clear."

"We're almost out of the city. Let's move before there are any more… incidents." Tessa gives Joe a side-eye glance.

Ten minutes of twists and turns, and bullets flying overhead later, the six of them are safe in a field outside of Paris.

The boys collapse in a heap of exhaustion.

"I thought I was in better shape than this." Fred gulps down mouthfuls of air.

A heavy weight drops onto Joe's back, slamming him further into the ground.

"Talk. Now." Arwen presses a knife into his lower back, tearing a hole into his shirt. "What the hell was that you pulled back there? Are you a witch?"

"Easy, Arwen. We don't want to kill him." Tessa steps in front of Joe and squats down to examine his hands.

"Yeah, Arwen." Sam scrambles as far away as he can get. His hands shake as he covers up his face. "Let's go easy on him. And his friends."

Joe squirms under Arwen, making her press her knife against him harder. He groans and drops his head to the earth. This is by far the worst birthday he's ever had. He lifts his head. "I don't know what happened back there. Sometimes stuff like that just happens."

"You just happened to stop a bullet from piercing your skull?" Tessa folds her arms across her torso. "I don't buy it. Tell us what you are, or I'll send you back to the soldiers, devil. They'd love to have you put into an asylum."

"Fine, but can you please get your friend off of me first?"

Tessa nods to Arwen who rolls off of Joe's back. She sits on the ground next to him, keeping her knife tightly gripped in her fist and clearly in Joe's line of sight.

"You're going to think I'm crazy, but we're not from here. And I don't mean that we're not from Paris. We're from the future."

Reluctantly, Joe tells the girls everything, with occasional interjections from Sam and Fred, about _The Book_ and how they ended up in Paris. The girls watch with keen eyes. They remain silent while he talks, judging his story.

"Today's your birthday?" Tessa blinks.

"That's what you took from all that?" Juniper rolls her eyes.

"Well, considering it's also _my_ birthday… How old are you?"

"Twelve," Joe says. "You?"

"Interesting." Tessa grins, ignoring Joe's question. "So, you guys need help finding this magic book of yours. We can help with that."

"You were ready to abandon us in prison an hour ago. You just tried to kill Joe. Why are you suddenly so eager to help us?" Sam narrows his eyes at Tessa.

"The revolution always needs more people. We help you, you help us."

"You owe us for getting us arrested in the first place!" Fred tosses his arms in the air.

"We got you out." Juniper shrugs and turns to Tessa. "Should we split up? We'll cover more of the city that way."

"That is a _great_ idea, June. Boys with boys. Girls with girls. Sound good?"

The boys never get the chance to answer. Tessa grabs onto Juniper and Arwen, pulling them over the hill and into the city.

"They're not normal." Fred scratches the back of his neck.

"Wait!" Joe runs to the hill the girls had just disappeared over. "How are we supposed to meet with each other if we find _The Book_?" He searches the hillside, but there's no sign of the girls anywhere.

"They're definitely reporting us to an insane asylum." Fred shakes his head. "And now we're right back where we started."

Joe sighs and rejoins his friends. The sun sits high in the sky, casting a golden glow over the city. From this distance, it's impossible to hear the screams or gunshots. If you didn't know any better, you would think it was just an average day in Paris.

"Something isn't right about those girls." Sam scrutinizes the air where the girls stood moments ago, almost as if he could still see them there. "I don't trust them."

"You don't trust anyone."

"Why would they want to split up if they clearly know the city better than us? It would be smarter to stick together." Sam stares at Joe and Fred, waiting for them to catch on to his hidden message.

They respond with blank stares.

Sam sighs, running a hand down his face. "We know for a fact they're thieves, and you just told them about the most valuable object in the universe."

"Oh." Joe's face reddens. He suddenly finds a spot on the ground very interesting. "Oops."

"Yeah," Sam scoffs. "Oops."

"We just have to find _The Book_ before them." Fred starts off for the city. "How hard could it be? We're experienced at this."

"Famous last words," Sam mumbles under his breath, but follows Fred over the hill regardless.

Joe takes one last look in the direction the girls disappeared in before joining his friends. Together, they head into the city.

* * *

Tessa, Arwen, and Juniper stand together on top of a stone building. From here, they have a perfect view of the streets below and all the pedestrians running around, including Joe, Sam, and Fred. They silently watch as the boys make their way down the streets and alleys of Paris.

"You're not going to tell him, are you?" Arwen crosses her arms.

Tessa smirks. "Eventually. I want to see what he's capable of first. Maybe Cassius and Rowena were wrong. It wouldn't be the first time."

"The letter was misguided. You saw that trick he did earlier, right?" Juniper looks down at the trio. "He's the only reason we're not dead right now. You still think they're wrong?"

Tessa studies Joe. "So he can do a little party trick. Big deal."

"You can't do that."

Tessa growls, whipping out a large blue book with silver squiggles on the cover. She eyes it for a moment. "No, but _I_ don't have to rely on some stupid book to get us home."

"Stupid?" Juniper snatches _The Book_ out of Tessa's hands. "Do you pay attention at all in your lessons? This is the most powerful object in the entire space-time continuum." Juniper starts flipping through _The Book_ , staring at it as if it were a god. She carefully traces the shimmering green ink, biting her lip as she does so. She focuses on the images rather than the words.

Arwen steps between them, hands on her hips. "This was supposed to be a simple retrieval mission, Tess. We should be heading back home by now. Cas and Rowena are going to be furious if we wait any longer. Besides, this dress is killing me." She pulls at the bodice of her blue dress. "I can barely move in this hideous thing."

"We'll be home before you know it. As soon as this Joe kid proves to me that he's the one." Tessa taps her chin, eyeing the boys as they head into a narrow alley below. "And I know the perfect test to use."

"You're not going to tear us again, are you?" Arwen wraps her arms around her stomach. "I'm still nauseous from the last one."

"No need. I can do everything from right here." Tessa cracks her knuckles, dark purple sparks flying from her fingertips. She holds her palms facedown over the alley the boys walked into. "It's showtime, ladies."

Arwen rolls her eyes. "You're going to get us in trouble."

"It's what I do best."


	6. Magic is a Girl's Best Friend

The tall, stone buildings loomed over Joe, Sam, and Fred. The streets were empty and except for a stray gunshot in the distance, Paris was completely silent. The citizens had mostly vanished into their homes. Only a few brave souls remained out on the streets, eager to volunteer in the revolution.

The boys were trying to avoid the battle. Using their knowledge from past experiences, they assumed _The Book_ would be with some famous historical figure. The problem was, every person they could think of was currently being shot at.

"Look, I get that we can't exactly be out in the middle of the battle right now, but why are we wondering around alleys like some creepy homeless guy?" Fred kicks a stray pebble down the passageway. It bounces off a wall, creating an echoing tick. "At least out there we have a chance of finding _The Book_."

"Because we need a place to hide out until they run out of bullets." Joe continues to lead the trio down the tunnel-like path. His eyes keep darting to the sky. The buildings are practically collapsing, and he doesn't want to end up like a crepe on the sidewalk.

"You're lost, aren't you?" Sam crosses his arms and shakes his head.

"No." Joe immediately answers, refusing to admit the obvious. His stubbornness only makes him walk faster.

"We've been stuck in these back streets forever. It's like we're trapped in a maze."

"And that's my fault?" Joe rolls his eyes. "You two followed me in here."

They turn a corner and see another endless stretch of alley. The buildings prevent most of the sunlight from lighting the way. They push forward on their trek through the shadows.

"Well, it is your fault that we're in Paris to begin with," Fred says pointedly.

Joe stops and turns on Fred. "My fault? You were the one egging me on. You wanted to warp somewhere fun, remember?"

"Why would you listen to me? It's your book. Besides, I wouldn't call the French Revolution fun. I wanted to go to Hawaii or Tahiti. That would be fun. We never do anything wild for your birthday, except time travel to the past and nearly get shot. That is not fun."

"Admit it, Joe. You wanted to warp to find your uncle Joe," Sam accuses. "Don't blame Fred for this."

Joe clenches his fists, marching down the narrowing alley. "Sorry for caring about my family. My uncle has been missing for three months, and no one is doing anything about it. And yeah, maybe I thought that since I'm a Time Page now, that this would be easy. But it isn't. Once again, I have colossally messed up using the most powerful object in the universe. Thanks for the reminder of how much I suck."

"Just read it!" Sam yells, throwing his hands in the air. " _The Book_ practically came with an easy-to-read instruction manual. Learn how to use it. Why haven't you done that already?"

"Seriously, dude," Fred joins in. "You've had this thing for two years. You should be a master time traveler by now. What was it Freddi called it? A Warp Wizard?"

Joe's jaw is so tense, it hurts. He keeps his mouth shut and focuses on getting out of the alleys. Picking up his pace, he turns another corner. Once again, a seemingly endless alleyway is before them. He grumbles under his breath.

How are we still trapped here? He thinks to himself. Who designed this city? We should have found a way out by now. Some birthday this turned out to be.

"Great. I always dreamed I'd die of starvation before I was even born," Sam says sarcastically. "At least I got to visit Paris."

"You have weird dreams." Fred tilts his head.

Joe sighs, not even bothering to join in, but still annoyed with Sam and Fred. He doesn't have time to deal with their bickering. As much as the two argued with each other, they would never actually start fighting. The three of them were best friends after all. Having a secret time-traveling book did that to people.

Fred walks up next to Joe. "Can we take a break or something. My feet are killing me."

"I thought you wanted to get out of here." Joe glances at Fred out of the corner of his eye.

"Well, yeah, but I also want to rest for a bit."

"Which is it then?" Joe snaps. "Do you want to go home or take a break? You can't have it both ways, Fred."

"Jeez, Joe. Calm down." Fred holds his hand up defensively. "What is with you?"

"What is with me? Do you have any idea what I've been through these past few months?" Joe raises his voice. A familiar tingling sensation begins to build up in his hands. "My uncle has gone missing, the one person in my life who could help me understand _The Book_ and these insane magic abilities I apparently have! On top of that, my own great-granddaughter tells me I'm destined for some sort of apocalyptic showdown with my other uncle that's going to determine the fate of the universe!"

Fred and Sam exchange glances. Sam wrings his hands. "Showdown? Joe, are you okay?"

"No!" The buzzing in Joe's hands intensifies, spreading up his arms and into his head. "I'm stressed, and maybe I am a little scared. I should know how to use _The Book_ by now, but I don't. I can barely pull off a basic card trick, let alone control the most powerful magic object in the universe. We should just let those girls steal it. They'd probably handle it better than me!"

"You really need to calm down, man." Fred and Sam stare at Joe's hands, backing away slowly. Joe won't back down. "It's not your fault."

"It isn't? Because one minute ago, it was. I'm sorry I got I us into this mess. I'm sorry I'm a terrible excuse for a magician. And I'm sorry that I can't get us out of this stupid alley!" Joe yells in frustration, slamming his glowing fist into the wall. A bright flash of green bursts out and blinds the boys.

It takes several seconds for the black spots to fade from their visions. When the trio can finally see again, they find themselves standing in front Tessa, Juniper, and Arwen. The girls stare at them through a gaping hole in the wall. The edges are still glowing a soft green.

Joe takes in a shaky breath and cradles his hand. His knuckles are bleeding, but the tingling feeling has faded.

Tessa lifts the corner of her mouth. "You're definitely the one."

"The one?" Joe raises his eyebrow at her, panting, his face still flushed. "What are you talking about?"

"Is this your book?" Tessa again ignores Joe's question and holds up a large blue book with silver markings on the cover. "We found it in our friend Lafayette's library. Which you just broke into…" She trails off, assessing the damage around her. The interior of the room appears fine, but the wall is completely destroyed.

"Yes!" Sam snatches _The Book_ out of her hands. "Let's get out of here."

"What happened?" Juniper carefully traces the rough edges of the newly formed hole. The green light has faded but the stone is still warm to the touch. She turns to Joe. "Did you do this?"

Joe looks down at his hands, flipping them over and studying them. "It was an accident. Like I said, stuff like that just happens sometimes."

A dark shadow passes over Tessa's face. "You need to learn to control yourself. You'll hurt someone, or worse. You can't be the only one of your kind. Find a teacher."

"I can't." Joe bites his lip. An awkward silence follows.

Fred looks at _The Book_ in Sam's hands. "I think it's time we head home. This has been fun and all, but I miss the safety of my bedroom. There are a lot less gunshots there."

"Right." Joe walks over to grab _The Book_ from Sam, opening it to the Transporter Page.

The girls look between Joe, Sam, and Fred, noticing the large gaps between them. "Is something wrong? You three were way friendlier with each other before."

"We're fine." The three answer simultaneously, not bothering to look at each other.

Joe clears his throat, forces a smile, and types in the information into _The Book_. Green mist slowly swirls around the trio. "Um, thanks for your help. It was nice meeting you. Sorry we couldn't hang out longer. Good luck with your revolution."

Tessa chuckles and pulls out a green glowing pocket watch. "Don't worry. We'll be seeing each other again real soon. I promise."

"What-" The green mist envelops the boys, cutting Joe off abruptly. There's a flash of green light, and the trio is whisked away to a different time.


	7. An Invitation

Joe, Fred, and Sam drop back into Joe's bedroom. Everything is exactly as they left it.

Joe rushes to put  _The Book_  back in its box, slamming the lid down. He doesn't want to warp twice in one day. Turning back to Sam and Fred, he frowns. No one speaks.

Sam rocks back and forth on his heels, while Fred scratches the back of his head, letting out a quiet whistle. " _So_ , I should probably get going," Fred says. "I, uh, have some homework to do."

Joe doesn't bother to point out that they're on summer break and don't have any homework. Not that Fred would be doing homework anyway even if they did have some to do.

Sam nods. "Yeah, me too."

That, Joe could believe.

A soft knock on the door makes all the boys jump. Joe's mom blinks at their startled expressions. "Sorry. I don't mean to interrupt, but a letter just came for you, honey." She holds up a golden envelope. Joe's name is embellished in green ink on the front.

"Okay, thanks." Joe offers her a half-smile. "Just set it on my desk."

She does and quickly leaves the room after. Joe glances at the letter, but leaves it there for now. Probably just another birthday card.

"I guess I'll see you guys later then." Joe walks with Sam and Fred to the door. He opens his mouth, but no one words come to him. On his way out, he grabs the letter off the desk. A distraction for him if nothing else.

It flares to life in Joe's hands. He yelps, dropping it on the ground. Fred and Sam stare at him with raised eyebrows. Joe doesn't notice, his eyes are focused on the envelope.

Green flames curl and spread out around the envelope, revealing the letter inside. A blank gold page glistens up at him, reflecting light and creating a disco ball effect on Joe's bedroom walls.

Carefully, Joe bends down to pick it up. Despite the flames, the letter is cool to the touch. As soon as he touches it, words in green ink materialize on the page.

_Dear Mr. Joseph Arthur,_

_We would like to formally invite you and your closest friends to Horae Manor. A place for the magically inclined and gifted. Where people like you can learn to hone your craft._

_We request that you join us at your earliest convenience. Time is of the essence._

_Sincerely,_

_WW_

"What does it say?" Fred peers over Joe's shoulder, his eyes squinting.

"It's an invitation. To a magic school." Joe reads the letter again and flips it over to the other side, but it's blank. "It doesn't really say much."

He hands the letter to Fred, who flips the card to look at both sides. "It doesn't say  _anything_." He holds the card up to Joe. The green ink has vanished, showing a simple blank piece of paper.

Joe's eye narrow as he takes back the letter. The words begin to redraw themselves in the same green ink. "That's weird." He holds the letter up for Fred and Sam to see. "Do you see the words now?"

They both nod, silently reading the letter. Sam takes it out of Joe's hands. Once again, the words vanish. "Interesting. I've never seen this kind of tech before. Does it read fingerprints?" He examines the letter more closely.

Fred laughs. "It's a letter to a magic school, and you're looking for a fingerprint scanner? It's a piece of paper, not an iPhone."

A frown forms on Joe's lips.  _This can't be real_ , he thinks to himself. Sure, he had magic powers, but were there others like him? He taps his fingers on his thigh.

_"You need to learn to control yourself. You'll hurt someone, or worse. You can't be the only one of your kind. Find a teacher."_ Tessa's words echo in Joe's mind. He did need to learn how to control his powers. Maybe if he got good enough, he could find his Uncle Joe. Or maybe the people running this place knew his uncle.

He stares at the letter. It seems real. Taking it back from Sam, he looks for an address or information on how to RSVP. "How am I supposed to respond to this?"

"You're going?" Sam blinks.

Joe can't help the smile that appears on his face. "It's a magic school, Sam. An actual school for magic. You saw what I did in Paris. Don't you think I should learn how to control that?" He glances down at the letter again. "And you guys can come too."

"Why would we go?" Fred crosses his arms. "It's bad enough we have to go back to school in the fall. Why would we want to give up the rest of our summer break? Besides, magic is your thing. You're the one with a magic time-traveling book."

"Because this is really cool?"

"Fair enough."

Sam groans. "Didn't we just go through this? Bad things happen when we mess with magic."

"That's why we have to go learn about it." Joe grins and puts his arm around Sam's shoulder. "Think about it, Sam. No more accidental warps."

Sam clenches his jaw, knowing he's already lost. "I'm not going to win this argument, am I?"

Joe's smile falters as he realizes he has no way of contacting whoever sent the letter. The mysterious WW. "I still don't know how to respond. There's no return address. Anyone know how to write a magical letter?"

Fred and Sam both shake their heads.

Joe frowns and holds up the letter. "Maybe I just… respond?" He awkwardly clears his throat. "My friends and I accept your invitation."

Nothing happens. No more green flames appear. The words remain the same.

"Maybe it's broken?" Fred offers.

"I-  _ah_!" Green flames spread over the letter without warning. This time, Joe holds on. As the flames spread out, he feels no pain. The fire vanishes as quickly as it appeared. New text fills out the page.

_Thank you for your quick response, Mr. Arthur._

_In one week, you will be taken to Horae Manor. Please be prepared to leave promptly._

_We look forward to meeting and working with you._

_Sincerely,_

_WW_

Joe flashes his teeth in a bright grin. "Guys, we're going to magic school."


	8. Horae Manor

_One week later…_

Joe, Sam, and Fred are gathered in Joe's bedroom, standing in the same spot where Joe opened his letter from Horae Manor and the mysterious WW. Joe rereads the letter for the hundredth time. He can't believe this is happening to him. He'd be lying if he said he never fantasized about being whisked away to a magic school before. This was a dream come true for him. There was only one problem.

"How are we supposed to get there?" Sam crosses his arms. "Are they picking us up? Or were we supposed to buy plane tickets?"

Joe scratches the back of his head. "I'm not sure. The letter only says to be prepared to leave promptly in a week. I assume someone's coming to get us. That's what I told my mom at least."

The boys had invented the lie that one of Joe's relatives had paid for them all to go to a summer camp for the last few weeks of summer break. They would all be back in time to start school again in the fall. If they ever left in the first place. Joe's bedroom was crowded with luggage.

"Should we be waiting outside?" Fred glances out the window. The streets below are empty. No one appears to be coming.

"Look, I don't have the answers, okay? I'm just hoping things will work out like they always do." Joe glares at his two best friends, a buzzing building up in his head. "And I'd appreciate it if you two would stop nagging me about it."

Sam and Fred exchange worried looks. "No one's nagging you about anything, dude."

"Kinda seems like you are."

Fred and Sam decide not to push the subject anymore. The trio continues to stand around the room in silence, awkwardly shuffling their feet every now and then. Five minutes go by, then ten, then twenty.

Joe can't remember a time when things were this tense among the three of them. For as long as he can remember, they've been best friends, inseparable. He felt bad for snapping at them, but he was under a lot of pressure. Receiving a letter to go to a magic school was not normal. Even with _his_ life. All he could do was hope that things would go back to normal soon enough. He would go to this Horae Manor, study magic, become a master magician, and find his Uncle Joe. If he had to have some epic showdown with his evil uncle along the way, then so be it. Joe could handle it. As long as he became a master magician first. A Warp Wizard.

"Maybe I'm supposed to warp there? Like some sort of test?" Joe digs through his backpack to pull out _The Book_ and begins flipping through the pages. He had searched through it in depth over the past week, desperate to find any information on Horae Manor. Of course, there was nothing. _The Book_ had a tendency to reveal information at its own pace.

"Or maybe that letter will burst into flames again and give us some directions." Sam wrinkles his nose at the golden letter, as if it were to blame for all his problems.

"Where's your sense of adventure, Sam?" Fred lightly nudges Sam's shoulder. "Joe's finally taking your advice and learning how to use _The Book_. At least be happy about that."

"Why did he need to drag me into it?"

Joe barely hears them, he's too focused on the letter. There must be something he's missing. A secret code? An invisible button?

With a heavy sigh, he drops the letter to the ground. Maybe this was all some stupid prank from one of those kids who liked to tease him at school because he was into magic tricks. Horae Manor doesn't exist. There's no such thing as a magic school in real life.

Joe would never find his uncle. If nothing happened in the next fifteen minutes, he would give up.

The letter gracefully floats toward the ground and settles on the floor.

A sharp cracking noise snaps through the silence and a blazing white light fills the room. Blinking away the black spots dancing in front of their eyes, the trio watches as a violet oval appears and floats in the air before them. Purple sparks and small lightning bolts dance around the edges of the oval. The outline is jagged, as if someone ripped the shape out of a piece of paper. The violet oval reveals nothing.

"Let me guess, we have to walk through the mysterious purple portal?" Sam rolls his eyes. "Why couldn't they just send a car? I'm not walking through anything that's shooting off lightning bolts."

"I don't think you have a choice." Joe tentatively walks around what he assumes is a portal of some kind. It's two-dimensional, and if he stands in the right spot, he can't see it all. But when he moves to the other side, it reappears and looks identical to the front side. "Do you think it's safe?"

"No," Sam says at the same time Fred says, "Sure."

"Oh, come on. They wouldn't send us some death portal." Fred grabs his bag off the floor. "Let's get going." With a grin, he jumps through the oval without waiting for Joe and Sam. It swallows him whole.

Sam scratches the back of his neck. "Well, it didn't look like it hurt…" He slips his hand into the portal and pulls it back out. "It kind of tingles." He looks at Joe. "Should we go?"

"After you." Joe waves his arms in a grand gesture towards the portal.

With a shake of his head, Sam grabs his luggage and steps through the oval.

Left alone in his room, Joe pauses to glance at all of his belongings, the old photos on the wall, his favourite Houdini poster… All of it feels like it belongs to a different person now. He looks back at the portal. A thousand questions spun around in his head. There was only one way to answer them.

He slings on his backpack, feeling the weight of _The Book_ against his back, and grabs the invitation off the floor. "Here I go." Taking a deep breath, Joe steps into the purple portal.

And out into a place of wonder. Joe instantly knows he is no longer on Earth.

The portal behind him disappears, but he barely notices, too distracted by the sight in front of him. His eyes are first drawn to the sky. It bears no resemblance to the bright blue sky he's used to. This sky is a mix of indigo, violet, navy, black, and pink. The colors blend together forming clouds that look like an artist's palette. Silver stars shine brighter than diamonds. A shooting star streaks across the sky, leaving a trail of neon green in its wake. An ivory moon, larger than the one on Earth, looms low over the ground.

Under the cosmos, grass sprawls out in a great field. Patches of multicolored flowers sprinkle the yard. Off to the side, a series of small pools of water flow into several slim streams. The water reflects the sky and the stars floating high above and sparkles in the golden moonlight. The streams weave around the ground and flow directly off the edge of the land. The round plot of land he is standing on is floating over nothingness. It's surrounded by space on all sides.

Joe's eyes drift over the expansive building in front of him. Horae Manor. The manor is as intimidating as it is inviting. It's three stories tall and wide enough to cover a football field. The lights attached to the columns around the entrance create a warm, welcoming glow. The columns, as well as the rest of the building, are completely made of white marble. Grand windows dot the sides, but are shaded so that no one can see inside them. A semi-circular balcony hangs over the front door.

Joe is entranced by the view. The house, the sky, the fact that he was standing on a massive floating rock, is almost too much for him to take in. He steps forward, desperate to go inside. The manor dares him to discover its secrets.

"What took you so long?"

Joe jumps at the sudden voice. He twists around to find Sam and Fred standing behind him. Fred has a toothy grin on his face, while Sam's mirrors Joe's expression of wonderment.

"Where are we?" Sam stares at the sky, spinning around to get the full view. He notices the edge of the world and blinks in surprise. "This can't be real. Where on Earth could this place exist?"

"Not on Earth." Joe turns back to the house. "I don't think we're even in the same galaxy as Earth."

"Well, what are we waiting for? We have to go inside." Fred steps up, pulling Joe and Sam with him. "Let's go make some magic!"

The trio grabs their bags and moves up to the front doors. In the center of the tan wood, a sigil shaped like a clock face is carved. Roman numerals circle the outside of it, but at the center lies a green hourglass. Staring closely, Joe notices the grains of sand are actually spilling into the bottom half, and the clock hands slowly tick their way through time. Somehow, this wooden carving is functioning.

Joe grins to himself. Magic.

Equally spaced out within the clock face, rest four circles, each with a different symbol inside. In the top circle, an odd green geometric shape is carved into the doors. It shows a small diamond shape trapped inside a larger square, with the corners of the diamond, touching the sides of the square. A cross runs through both shapes, connecting them to the outline of the circle. On the bottom of the clock, directly above the Roman numeral VI, is a similar, but different purple geometric shape. It's the reverse of the one above it. In this one, a small square is fitted inside a diamond, with a cross running through both of them and connecting them to the circle surrounding the shape. On the right side of the clock face, a symbol Joe has never seen before is shown in the circle. It resembles a cross tipped over on its side, with a ring attached the left tip. It is a slightly darker shade of silver than the other symbol on the left side of the clock face. This other symbol is also completely unfamiliar to Joe. Like the other one, it resembles a cross, but this one is standing straight up, and the ring is attached to the top and two curved lines stick out. On the bottom, a downward bent line is attached.

"Are you going to knock, or…" Fred pokes Joe in the shoulder, snapping him back into the present.

"Yeah, sorry." Ignoring the urge to stare at the image in the doors some more, Joe reaches out and firmly knocks. A chill goes down his spine. This is it. He was on his way to becoming a wizard.

It takes a moment, but eventually, the doors swing wide open. A pair of smiling faces greets the boys on the other side.

They speak in unison, "Welcome to Horae Manor, Joseph Arthur. We've been expecting you."

Joe's heart skips a beat. He rushes inside, eyes lighting up and taking in every single thing in the foyer. It's a grand entrance, complete with a broad staircase, a crystal chandelier, towering columns, and statues standing guard along the walls. The whole room was bathed in a golden light. He couldn't wait to explore the rest of the manor.

He spins back around to the people who greeted him. A man and a woman stand in the doorway, watching Joe with soft smiles. They both look to be in their mid-thirties. Their glowing eyes immediately draw him in. The man's eyes are a startlingly bright green, while the woman's are a dark violet, matching the color of the sky outside.

"I'm sure you have a lot of questions," the man says. "Let me start by introducing myself. My name is Cassius, and this," he gestures to the woman next to him, "is my partner, Rowena. We are the current Warp and Aether Wizards, and we're here to guide you into the world of magic."


	9. Strange Places, Familiar Faces

Joe places the last of his clothes in the dresser in his new room for the summer. Rowena and Cassius had sent the boys upstairs to pick out their rooms, telling them that they would explain everything at dinner later that night. Joe had never been more excited for a meal.

The room he picked out was like every other room in the manor. It was about the size of his bedroom back home, a little bigger maybe. It had a bed, a walk-in closet, a private bathroom, a dresser, a desk, and a fireplace. What made his room unique was the view; because his room had a glass ceiling. The room was shaped like a dome with glass walls all around. It gave him a perfect view of the celestial sky. A view he would never get tired of seeing.

Fred and Sam had picked out their own rooms just a few doors down the hall. Joe hadn't looked into them too much but knew that Fred had found what was probably the largest room in the manor. It had enough room to fit half a basketball court inside.

Sam's room was much more modest. Closer to Joe's in size, but his had a separate area containing a massive desk and floor-to-ceiling bookshelves.

Joe smiles to himself, knowing it was no coincidence that the rooms were perfect for each of them. They were told they could decorate and customize them as much as they wanted to, but Joe didn't see any reason why he'd want to change anything.

A soft knock on the door catches Joe's attention. He swivels around to find Sam and Fred standing in his doorway and invites them inside with a wave of his hand.

Studying his room with wide eyes, Fred lets out a low whistle. "Nice. Dude, how awesome is this place?"

"It's better than I ever imagined."

"Don't you think it's a little quiet?" Sam raises an eyebrow. "Where are all the other students?"

"I'm sure they're around." Joe shrugs. "Have you seen how big this place is? We'll probably meet them all at dinner."

"Speaking of dinner." Fred places his hands over his stomach as it begins to grumble. "I'm starving. Let's go find the cafeteria already."

* * *

To no one's surprise, the dining hall is as magnificent as the rest of the manor. The expansive room is painted in warm red and gold, with ivory statues dotting the walls. The ceiling, twenty feet in the air, displays a marvelous mural with pictures of people, clocks, space, and countless magical images. A welcoming fireplace rests on the far side of the room on the opposite side of the dining table. Despite the room's size, there are only eight seats spaced around the empty table.

"Guess we're early?" Joe looks to Fred and Sam and shrugs.

"On the contrary, you're right on time." Seemingly out of nowhere, Cassius appears behind the trio. He winks at Joe. "But that's no surprise, is it?" Cassius quickly trots down the few steps and heads over to the dining table. He takes a seat at the head of the table.

Not knowing what else to do, Joe, Sam, and Fred follow Cassius to the table. They sit in three empty seats on the left side of the table.

"I must apologize for Ro. She's not the best at keeping track of time." Cassius chuckles to himself, knowing a joke the boys don't. "She and the girls will be here shortly. And then we can answer all your questions and give you a proper introduction."

Joe nods, at a loss for words. He takes advantage of the quiet to really look at Cassius. Again, his eyes are the first thing Joe notices. The bright green color is not natural in any way. Cassius's darkly tanned skin only makes them stand out more. His hair is a curly mess. The black strands frame his face and reach down to his neck. His beard is more controlled, lining his jaw and mouth. Even sitting, Cassius looks tall. His body is fairly slim, but his arms look muscular enough to defend himself in a fight.

All in all, Joe thinks he looks pretty normal. Even his clothes, a black denim jacket over a grey t-shirt and grey-blue jeans with a pair of grey converse on his feet, are ordinary. Joe never would have guessed he was a wizard.

The silence is finally broken as Rowena steps into the room. She makes her way to the table and sits on the end opposite of Cassius. "Sorry, I'm late. Though I see I'm not the last person to arrive." She stares pointedly at the three empty seats left at the table and sighs. "Why am I not surprised?"

Like with Cassius, Joe is surprised at how normal Rowena looks. Other than her glowing violet eyes, she would pass as an average human.  She's just as tanned as Cassius. Her shoulder length hair is maroon. Though she's not as tall as Cassius, she is just as fit.

"Relax, Ro. They'll be here soon. Besides, they don't need to hear the welcome speech again. Why don't we just get started without them?"

"I suppose." Rowena shakes her head and turns to the trio. "I apologize for my apprentice. She tends to run on her own schedule. Something that will have to change now that you're here. Teamwork isn't her specialty."

Joe blinks. "Um, who?"

Rowena dismissively waves her hand. "Your aether partner. I'm sure she'll want to introduce herself."

"My what?" Joe is lost. He can feel his head buzzing again. "I'm sorry, but I have no idea what's going on. Last week, I got a random letter inviting me to come to some magic school. You didn’t exactly make it easy to get here either, and now that I'm finally here, all you're doing is giving me more questions than answers! Can someone please tell me what's going on already?"

Rowena and Cassius stare at him.

"Sorry, about him. He's been having a lot of outbursts lately," Fred nervously chuckles. "He's been under a lot of stress."

Cassius grins. "I'm afraid that's our fault actually. Your invitation sort of got lost in the mail. You should have been here months ago. Those outbursts you've been having are a result of not having your magic activated. Let me guess, you've been having headaches? Does your head feel like it's buzzing?"

Joe nods, gingerly touching the side of his head.

"Don't worry, that'll be fixed soon." Cassius reaches over and pats Joe on the shoulder. "You and I are going to have so much fun together. There's a lot you have to learn, and unfortunately we don't have a lot of time left."

"What do you mean?"

"Cassius…" Rowena shoots him a warning look. "Not now. There's no need to worry them. Besides, there's a lot you need to cover first."

"Of course." Cassius glances at the three empty chairs. "Well, I guess there's no point in waiting any longer. Let's get started, shall we?"

With a snap of his fingers, Cassius summons a full three-course meal that fills out the entire table.

The boys' mouths quickly start to water. They haven't eaten all day and every piece of food in front them looks incredibly delicious. Everything from steak to bread rolls to steaming bowls of corn lays out on the table.

The trio doesn't hesitate. They immediately pile food onto their plates and shove it into their mouths.

"Oh, man. This is _so_ good. Is every meal like this?" Fred asks with flakes of food flying out of his mouth.

Cassius laughs. "Oh, yes. And if you have any special requests, feel free to ask. We can summon any kind of food here."

Joe momentarily forgets about his problems and questions, his stomach doing all the thinking for him. This is arguably the most amazing food he's ever had. He could get used to this. Maybe things won't be so bad after all. He doesn't even care that this mysterious partner of his wasn't here. More food for him. After the chaos of the past week, this moment of peace was nice.

But of course, peace can't last forever.

The quiet shatters as a bright flash of purple fills the room followed by a cacophony of arguing voices. A portal identical to the one the boys used to travel to Horae Manor is revealed as the purple light fades. Three small figures fall through it and land in a pile on the floor.

The largest one, a bulky, brunette girl, pulls away, spinning back around to yell at another one. "What was that?"

Another figure, also a girl, but smaller in stature and possessing startling purple eyes, sneers back in response. "That was me saving us, again, because you got us in trouble, again."

"You opened a tear and dropped us in the middle of a firefight! What was I supposed to do, not fight back?"

The last figure, the smallest of the girls, crawls away from the other two, her arms shaking as she moves. "Um, girls? Can't we just be happy we're alive?"

 She's ignored.

"You're lucky I didn't tear you into a deep hole," the purple-eyed one says.

"I'm going to tear you," the blonde one responds.

"Girls!" Rowena shouts, abruptly ending their argument.

The three girls shuffle to their feet, as if they just now noticed they weren't alone.

"Oh, hello. Are we late?" The purple-eyed girl batts her eyelashes, folding her arms behind her back. "So sorry. We lost track of time."

Rowena smirks. "Unfortunately, that's the last time you'll be able to use that excuse." She gestures to the trio. "Would you like to introduce yourselves? I know you've already met, but a proper introduction would be polite."

Joe's head tilts to the side as he squints at the girls. Had he met them before? They did look familiar, but he thinks he would have remembered someone with purple eyes.

She's the first to step forward. "Hello again, Joe. I told you we would meet again, and here we are. How are you liking Horae Manor so far?"

"I-" Joe stutters. How did this girl know his name?

The girl pouts, throwing her hands on her hips. "Don't tell me you don't remember me? Some warp partner you are."

Rowena loudly clears her throat, shooting the pouting girl a pointed stare.

The girl sighs. "Fine. Let's just start over then. My name is Tessa," she begins, almost bored. "I am the future aether wizard, spirit of tin, warrior and guardian of space." She raises a brow at Rowena. "Good enough?"

Rowena's lips turn down. "We'll talk later."

Tessa groans and mumbles something under her breath.

The smallest of the girls slips in front of Tessa. "Sorry about last time, guys. We didn't really have a choice." She glances sidelong at Tessa. "But in case you forgot, my name is Juniper, but you can call me June."

"And I'm Arwen," the blonde girl steps forward. "Ari for short."

The trio continues to stare blankly at the girls. They glance at each other for help, but it's obvious that none of them recognize the girls.

"Seriously?" Arwen crosses her arms. "You really don't remember us? It's only been one week!"

"Technically, it's been 218 years… and one week," Juniper says.

Arwen's eyes roll to the back of her head. "Nothing? Paris ring a bell? You stopped a bullet from flying through our skulls, but for whatever reason Tessa wasn't impressed by that so she tricked you into-"

"That's enough, Arwen." Tessa cuts her off. "I think they remember now."

Joe's mind races, trying to push through the confusion. These couldn't be the same girls they met in Paris. Joe, Sam, and Fred are the only people with the ability to time travel that he knew of. Of course, his crazy Uncle Jack managed to get around time somehow. And Sam's great-granddaughter, Samantha, had that pocket watch. But even in those cases it was still limited to family and close friends. How many time travelers are there in the world? Are there any others at this school?

Joe studies the girls once more. They did look familiar. If he pictured them in French revolutionary garb, he could definitely see the resemblance. But there's still one thing Joe can't get past.

"But your eyes," He finally manages to get out. The girl he met in Paris had bright green eyes, not purple.

Tessa blinks, her violet irises dark and alluring. "Well, I can't exactly blend in with eyes like these, now can I?" She tilts her head to the side, a small grin appearing on her lips. "I wear contacts when I visit non-magical lands."

"Well, I guess that makes- wait. Did you just say _non-magical_ lands?" Fred leans over the table, almost falling out of his seat. "Are there _magical_ lands out there?"

"Have you looked around? You're in one." Arwen shakes her head and moves towards the dining table. She takes a seat directly across from Fred. "Not the bright one of the bunch, are you?"

Fred opens his mouth to respond, but never gets the chance.

"You three look filthy." Rowena's eyes trace the girls up and down. "Could you at least wash your hands and change your clothes before dinner?"

The girls all glance down at their hands and clothes. To Rowena's point, they are all dirty, and their clothes look like they belong in the sixteenth century. With a few grumbles, the girls leave the room, hungrily staring at the food as they go.

As soon as they're gone, Rowena returns her attention to the boys. "Now, where were we?"

Cassius speaks, "I was just about to give these boys a crash course in why they're here. I'm sure they're eager to know."

The trio nods emphatically. Cassius has their full attention.

"When there is more time, we will give you the full history of Horae Manor and Warp and Aether Wizards. Unfortunately, we are running on a tight schedule at the moment. You'll have a big day tomorrow when we have you awakened." Joe opened his mouth to ask Cassius what he meant, but Cassius cut him off with a wave of his hand. "Save all questions until the end, please."

Joe sets his hand back down and resumes eating his meal, never taking his eyes from Cassius.

"To begin, you are eighty-second in a long line of magical peace keepers that have been watching over the space-time continuum for over five thousand years. Horae Manor was established by the inaugural couple as a place for future Warp and Aether Wizards to hone their skills and serve as a base of operations for all their missions. It holds many secrets. Good luck discovering them all." Cassius winks at the trio.

Rowena picks up the conversation, "You were selected thousands of years ago to be the next Warp Wizard, and Tessa was also chosen to be the next Aether Wizard. Every Warp and Aether Wizard was chosen from the start. Soon, you will see things you never could have dreamed of, and you will be capable of the most impressive of magical acts."

"When do I get to start?" Joe interrupts her. His eyes are wide with excitement. He couldn't wait to learn magic. Actual magic, not some silly card trick or pulling a rabbit out of a hat. He almost had to pinch himself. He had to dreaming. Everything had changed the moment he received his invitation from Horae Manor. Joe had started a new life.

Cassius chuckles. "Tomorrow you will be sent off to have your magical abilities awakened. I'm sure you've had a few magical moments the past few years?"

Joe nods, thinking back to how he stopped that bullet in Paris. But he had experienced magic before that. A memory played before his eyes. His screaming sister, an arrow flying towards her head, but Joe had stopped it. He didn't understand it at the time, still didn't understand it if he was being honest with himself, but he couldn't deny that he had somehow used magic.

Rowena nods as if she was expecting this. "Sometimes internal magic can manifest itself prematurely, and the user can have occasional outbursts. Don't worry, once you're awakened, you will slowly gain control over your abilities If your letter had arrived on time, we could have had you in training months ago. Unfortunately, it went to the wrong person."

"I'll say." A familiar voice rings out into the hall. "You almost had me partnered with an old man!" Tessa struts back into the room and takes a seat directly across from Joe. She leans forward. "You're definitely an improvement."

Joe nearly chokes on his food. This is the first time he's seen Tessa in modern clothes, not some historic costume. Given Rowena and Cassius' outfits, he should've expected Tessa to dress like a normal person. Still, he's surprised to see her wearing a simple outfit consisting of distressed black jean shorts, a white t-shirt, a red leather jacket, and black combat boots. The only odd thing she has on is an assortment of silver and gold necklaces with strange symbols on the pendants.

Rowena pinches the bridge of her nose. "We did not almost partner you with an old man. We knew it was a mistake immediately. Warp and Aether Wizards have always been the same age. Luckily, the man was very understanding of the situation and helped us correct it."

"I still don't understand how the letter went to the wrong person. They're supposed to be linked to the individual's time signature." Cassius strokes his beard for a moment before shaking his head. He looks at Joe. "Guess you two must have extremely closely linked signatures. Still, I don't believe that has ever happened before."

The conversation abruptly ends as Juniper and Arwen rejoin the others at the dining table. They sit on either side of Tessa. Like their friend, they too have changed into more appropriate clothing. Juniper sports an oversized lilac hoodie and grey jeans with beige sneakers on her feet. As soon as she sits down, her shoulders slump forward and her hair falls over her face. Despite her attempt to hide herself, Joe notices her studying him, Fred, and Sam.

Arwen relaxes into her chair. Despite her boyish appearance, she sits with a regal air about her. She wears a red and white baseball tee with a large, red B printed on the center and has on light blue jean shorts and grey sneakers. She immediately piles food onto her plate.

Joe returns his attention to Cassius. "So, what exactly should I be preparing for tomorrow?"

"Your awakening. You and your friends, along with Tessa, Arwen, and Juniper, will journey to Caelus to bring your magical powers to life." He winks. "It's very exciting. You should be back here within three days."

"But what is an awakening? Like, what do I have to do?" Joe turns to Rowena, hoping for a better answer.

"All you have to worry about is getting there. The All Father will take care of the rest." Rowena smiles and a warm, calming feeling washes through Joe. The tension he didn't realize he was holding in his shoulders vanished.

"Who's the All Father?" Fred speaks through a mouth-full of food, spraying bits everywhere, including Arwen's face. "Oops. My bad."

Her hands stiffly wipe away the crumbs. "The All Father is the man who started all this. He's as old as time itself."

"Because he _is_ time itself." Juniper hands her friend a napkin. "He's one of the most powerful and knowledgeable people in the universe, if not the most."

"And we'll get to meet him?" Sam's eyes sparked with interest at hearing an opportunity to meet another intellectual.

"Well, _you_ won't. He's very picky about who he lets in. As in, fellow magic users only. It's a shame too, he's a super nice guy." Tessa smirks, and tosses a piece of bread in her mouth. "My awakening was incredible. I wish I could feel that rush again."

"Rush?" Joe raised an eyebrow.

"It's the best feeling you'll ever have." Tessa's smirk widens into a grin. "Assuming it doesn't kill you, of course."


	10. The First Mission

Magical sunrises or not, getting up before the sun is in the sky sucks.

Joe stretches his arms out in front of him, letting out a huge yawn. He knew this was an important day. Cassius had stressed how key his awakening will be for his magic training. Not to mention how much better Joe would feel afterwards. He couldn't wait for these headaches to go away. He'd barely gotten any sleep last night because of them. Though in fairness, it could also have been his excitement for today's adventure.

His glass ceiling gave him a perfect view of the sunrise. The windows were dimmed enough that the light didn't blind him, but still allowed him to see the natural beauty of this strange world. The streaks of pink, orange, and purple slowly faded into a crystal blue sky. Only a few smears of green remained.

Joe slips out of bed and quickly gets dressed for the day. He has no idea what to expect and hopes he's dressed appropriately. Walking out into the main hall, Joe finds most of the others already gathered.

"So, we're really the only students at this school?" Sam asks. He, Arwen, and Juniper are immersed in conversation.

The girls both nod, but Juniper is the one who answers. "It used to house hundreds of students, but Rowena said that they had to shut most of the school down several years ago. Now, it's just for future Warp and Aether Wizards and their companions. But each Wizard is only allowed to bring three people with them. They really want to minimize the amount of people here."

"Why?"

Fred stands off to the side, eyes drifting over the room. He spots Joe and waves him over. "I am so glad you finally showed up, dude. Sam's been nerding out all morning."

"I'm trying to learn about our new home." Sam crosses his arms and narrows his eyes at Fred. "Maybe you should too since you're the one who wanted to come here in the first place."

Fred puts his arms behind his head. "It's a magic school on a magic planet with magic students. What else is there to know?"

Sam groans and looks to Joe for help, who rolls his eyes in response. It's too early to deal with Sam and Fred's drama. Instead, he scans around the room. "Where's Tessa?" he asks, noting that she's the only one missing.

"Sorry I'm late." Tessa struts into the room, almost as if she was waiting for her name to be announced. She yawns and rolls out her shoulders. "Ro and Cas wanted to squeeze in some last-minute training, and toss in a lecture or two," she mumbles the last sentence under her breath. "Is everyone ready to go?"

Tessa whips out a golden piece of metal from her belt, juts it out in front of her, and a white blade slices through the air. The metal sings as she waves it around, carving intricate patterns into the air. The golden handle, designed to look like shooting stars, wraps perfectly around her hand. The white blade extends almost three feet away from her. The gold design continues onto the blade of the sabre, shooting stars decorating it all the way to the tip.

The trio jumps away in unison, a mix of emotions on their faces. Sam is terrified, while Joe and Fred are much more curious about the weapon. "What's that?" they ask together.

"My Focus?" Tessa holds up her sabre. "It helps me control my tears. Wouldn't be very good if I tore this entire planet to the middle of the desert."

"What's a tear?" Joe stares her weapon up and down. Would he get one of those too? He tries to imagine himself swinging a cool sword around, and finds he quite likes the idea. He wouldn't just be a Warp Wizard. He'd be a Warp Warrior.

With a smirk and quick flick of her wrist, Tessa cuts her sabre through the air. A resonating crack sounds through the hall, opening up a purple portal. It's identical to the one the girls fell through last night at dinner. " _This_ is a tear."

"A tear is Tessa's equivalent to your warps." Juniper explains. "She can rip a hole in the fabric of space-time and travel anywhere or anytime in the universe. Though her ability to travel through time isn't as strong as yours. Her strength is lateral movement."

Fred scratches the back of his neck. "Uh, last time I checked, Joe can't warp us anywhere without _The Book_."

The girls stare at Joe. "Sorry, I guess everything we know about you is theoretical from our studies. Warp Wizards are supposed to have complete control over time. I'm sure you'll get there once you start your training."

"You really can't warp without your book?" Tessa shrugs. "I guess that makes it your Focus. Shame, you could've gotten a darb weapon as your Focus." Her sabre retracts, and she places it back on her belt.

"A darb…? Nevermind." Joe crosses his arms. "My book _is_ cool. It can stop time, warp us into the past and future, and-"

"Doesn't sound like much of a weapon. And without any training, you're going to be completely defenseless on this mission." Arwen exchanges looks with Tessa. "Which is probably why we're being forced to go along."

"Mission? I thought we were just taking Joe to be awakened." Sam steps away from the portal, still waiting to transport them to their destination.

"Yeah, but we have to get there first. If this is anything like Tessa's journey to be awakened, we're in for a few good fights."

"Fights?" Sam steps back even farther. "You know, on second thought. I think I'm going to stay right here. Where it's safe, and there are no fights."

"Awesome!" Fred clamps his hand down on Sam's shoulder, making him stumble. "A little action will be good for you, Sam."

"No, a salad is good for you. A nice walk through the park is good for you. A fight is not good for you!"

"Does he do this often?" Tessa watches Sam, a small crease forming in the center of her brow. "I can't listen to this the entire trip." The other two girls nod their agreement, each one watching Sam with a nervous look on their faces.

"He lives like this," says Fred, rolling his eyes.

"Well, now we know who the fun one is in your little trio." Tessa shoots a wink at Fred. "And if you guys are ready, we need to get going. It's going to take at least a day to get there, probably two."

The girls step into the portal and silently disappear. The boys, not having much choice, follow them through. Joe and Fred, pulling Sam with them, push through the portal. The purple gateway vanishes from the room, with no trace of the kids left behind.

Joe expected walking into a tear to feel like a warp. It did not.

Warping was like being pulled down a drain with lots of spinning that left you feeling nauseous. Excessive warping back to back could actually make Joe vomit. Tearing was like being shoved through a miniscule hole in the wall. It hurt. A lot. His body stretched and thinned out, twisting at all angles. He kept stretching and stretching. His skin burned and eyes watered. Everything was stretched as far as it could go. If this lasted any longer, Joe would rip into pieces.

It was over as quick as it began. A thousand rubber bands smacked against his skin as his body snapped back into place.  Blinking away the tears, Joe watches as a new world fades into view.

"Where are we?"

"Earth, actually. Home sweet home."

"Does your home look like this? Because mine definitely does not."

Before them lays a city of ruin. Ancient, dilapidated buildings of marble and stone are sprawled out in a large circle. The pathways carve an intricate maze throughout the city. In the center of it all, a large castle looms. Several towers had fallen down and most of the walls are cracked.

The town is surrounded by a lush, green jungle, and in the distance, the sound of a crashing waterfall can be heard. Mountains and volcanos rise high into the sky, smoke pouring out from the top of some.

"This place is incredible!" Fred runs over to the edge of the cliff they landed on. The city sits miles below them. "But why are we here and not there?"

"The city is protected by a magical barrier. This is as close as I can get us. We'll have to walk the rest of the way."

"That's a lot of walking."

"Oh, come on. It's good for you." Arwen gives Fred a rough pat on the back. "For the jock-type, you sure are lazy."

"I am not."

"So, how do we get down there?" Joe, being more cautious than Fred, stands a few feet back from the edge of the cliff. He studies the city far below them. "Do we have to climb down?"

Tessa chuckles. "If you want to die, but there is path." She gestures to the gap in vegetation next to her. A dirt trail leads into the jungle. Joe can barely see ten feet before it disappears into darkness.

"Uh, it's a little dark."

"Good thing we have magic then." Tessa's hand sparks with purple lightning. Within a few seconds, the lighting forms a small ball in the center of her palm, the occasional spark still shooting off. "Shall we?"

* * *

"So where are you girls from?" The six of them have been walking for a while. The conversation comes and goes. They'd been walking in silence for too long. It had been making Joe uncomfortable.

The walk itself was nice enough. They were surrounded by vibrantly colored trees, flowers, and vines. The sounds of exotic birds resonated throughout the jungle. In different circumstances, this would have made a lovely vacation destination.

"Well, Arwen and I are from Boston," Juniper begins. "But Tessa is from-"

"Everywhere!" Tessa quickly interrupts her friend. "I'm a traveler of sorts, but I've been in Boston for two years now."

"That's what happens when you grow up in a circus," Arwen mumbles under her breath.

Tessa purses her lips, a stray spark of lightning striking the air. "Don't be jealous that my life is more exciting than yours, princess." She focuses again on the ball of energy in her hand, calming the lightning before any other stray bolts could escape. Her eyes are intensely dark.

"Wait, did you say Boston?" Fred looks from Juniper to the large, red B on Arwen's shirt. The dots slowly connecting in his head. "No, no, no." He digs his heels into the ground and folds his arms over his chest.

"What's wrong with you? Boston's a nice city." Sam raises an eyebrow at Fred. The whole group has stopped to stare at him.

"No city that is home to the _Red Sox_ is nice." He speaks the name with such contempt that most of the group flinches. Fred places his hand over his heart. "Pure Yankee blood runs through my veins. I can't go on some quest with a Red Sox fan. It's sacrilege! I'd never be allowed back into Yankee Stadium!" He gestures to Arwen's shirt, sneering at the villainous letter.

"I'm surprised he knows how to use the word sacrilege," Sam mutters to Joe, who nods in agreement.

Arwen glances down at her shirt and shrugs. "Okay, whatever." She takes her shirt off, leaving her in just a blue tank top, and ties it around her waist. "Better, Yankee Doodle? Can we get going now?"

Fred's mouth open and closes like a fish out of water. " But, but…" He's at a loss for words. This was not the response he was anticipating. "You don't care? You have to care! The Yankee, Red Sox rivalry is the greatest rivalry in baseball history. Fans are sworn enemies of each other. How are you okay with all this?"

"I don't really care about sports," Arwen says, and Fred stumbles back in shock. "It's kind of a family thing to support the Red Sox, but I'm not into it. If you want a rivalry, go talk to my father. He'll give you the fight you want." She turns away and continues down the trail, abruptly ending the conversation.

The other kids follow her, and Fred drags his feet in the rear. He runs his hand down his face, his eyes narrowed at the ground. He begins to mumble to himself, but everyone leaves him to puzzle it out on his own.

Joe quickens his pace to catch up with Tessa. It's time for him to get some answers. Everything had been moving along so quickly, he hadn't had time to ask anyone any of the questions that had been buzzing around inside his mind. And he had a lot of them. "So, a circus, huh? That's pretty cool."

"Huh?" Tessa momentarily takes her attention away from her magic and blinks at Joe, as if she just now noticed he was there. "Oh, yeah. It was sort of a circus, carnival hybrid. My mom was a fortune teller, and my dad was an illusionist. Before this," she nodded towards her hands, "I was training to be an acrobat. But once I discovered my powers, I started focusing on them more."

"How did it happen? How did you discover your powers? I got _The Book_ as a gift for my tenth birthday, but I didn't know I could do magic until my friends, my sister, and I warped to ancient China and there was this huge army, but only like twenty of us. One of the solider shot an arrow at my sister and was able to slow time right before the arrow hit her. But I've never been able to use magic like that before, and that was the only time that happened until Paris last week. It kind of seems like I can only use it in high-stress situations, but that doesn't seem very useful. I mean, you can use your magic whenever you want. You clearly have amazing control over it-"

"Joe!" Tessa snaps. She had been grinding her teeth through his entire speech and couldn't take it anymore. The ball of light in her hands had darkened and more lightning bolts were shooting out. "If we are going to be wizard partners for life, you have got to talk less. Your innocence is charming, bunny, but annoying."

Joe's cheek flare crimson. " Sorry, it's a bad habit… wait, did you just call me bunny? And did you say partners _for life_? Like marriage? I didn't sign up for that. That's-"

"You're doing it again, bunny." Tessa shoots him a sidelong glance before returning to the ball in her hands. The color gradually lightened back up, and the sparks died down. "Do you want me to answer your questions or not?"

Joe nods, finally silent. He gives Tessa all his attention, ready to learn as much as he can. He couldn't remember the last time he had been this excited about something.

"When I discovered my magic, I was eight and it was a complete accident. It almost killed me. I was practicing my aerial acrobatics, and my ropes came loose. I fell thirty feet towards the ground with no net to catch me." Joe opens his mouth to ask why she didn't have a net, but a quick glare from Tessa shut him up. "So, I panicked. As I was falling, all I wanted was to be safe. My eyes were closed, and I was screaming. Next thing I know, there's this loud cracking noise, and then my body felt like it was being pulled in a hundred different directions. Then it was over. I landed on something soft. When I opened my eyes, I was back in my tent, laying on my bed. I opened my eyes just in time to see a purple portal above my head disappear. No one else in the troop had seen or heard anything. I thought I had imagined the whole thing until I accidentally opened another tear two months later."

"What happened that time?" Tessa's story had only given Joe more questions, but he was fascinated with her. This was the kind of exciting life he had always wanted to live.

"And yes, I did call you bunny before. I think it's very fitting for you." Tessa ignores Joe's other question. "And I also said partners for life. Being a Warp or Aether Wizard is a life sentence. So, yeah, it is kind of like marriage, minus any romance." Tessa gives Joe a pointed look, wanting to make that part very clear. "And for the record, I don't have as much control over my powers as you think I do. I've only been at the academy for a few months. I've learned a lot, but after seeing what Rowena can do, I know I have a long way to go. Anything else, bunny?"

"Well, I, I guess not." Of course, Joe had a million more questions. What powers did Tessa have? Did she know all the powers he would have too? Was bunny a permanent nickname? But he needed time to process everything he had been told. Besides, he knew if he asked Tessa anymore questions, she would snap at him again. He didn't need that right now.

He concentrated on the path ahead of him. Soon, they would be coming upon the city. Not long after that, Joe would have his powers awakened. As long as he lived through the process, he tried not to think about the alternative, he would be a full-fledged Warp Wizard with crazy awesome magical powers. Everything he ever wanted would be happening. He just had to make it through the rest of this mission. Simple enough, right?

**Author's Note:**

> A/N - So this is my first dive into fanfiction. Putting this out there as a feeler to see what you guys think! Please feel free to leave a review and some constructive criticism! For more info about this story, check out my profile!


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